Life of Mary Fitzgerald: A look back at one of NYPD's first female detective

Retired detective Mary Fitzgerald celebrated her 95th birthday surrounded by members of the NYPD, a police force where she was one of the first female detectives back in 1959. To honor the barriers she broke down and the work she contributed to the force, take a look through Fitzgerald's life in photos.Susan Watts/New York Daily News

After joining the Department in 1952, Fitzgerald was promoted to Detective in 1959 and then Detective Second Grade in 1968, becoming one of the first women in the NYPD to do so on both accounts.Courtesy Mary Fitzgerald

During her long career in the department, she served in multiple divisions, including the Intelligence Division where she was on the plain clothes presidential security team. Fitzgerald (third from right) is pictured here with the Former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy as they walked through Manhattan. In addition to Kennedy, Fitzgerald worked with fellow former First Ladies Lady Bird Johnson and Nancy Reagan, as well as Queen Sofia of Spain and Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir, to name a few.Bettmann

Fitzgerald also served in the Bureau of Policewomen, the Queens District
Attorney's Squad, the Special Frauds Squad and the Office of the Chief of Detectives.Courtesy Mary Fitzgerald

Jacqueline Kennedy gave Fitzgerald this photo along with the message, "With best wishes." The gift hangs in her Roosevelt Island apartment.Courtesy Mary Fitzgerald

She retired from the force in 1983, at the age of 60.Courtesy Mary Fitzgerald

Mary Fitzgerald is all smiles as she celebrates her 95th birthday on Jan. 17, 2018, with members of the NYPD.Susan Watts/New York Daily News